siberian huskies

[gucciman]

i'm thinking of getting a siberian husky to keep my samoyed company.

is it true you can never let them off the lead to have a run about?

do they make good pets?

[Snappy]

Try reading this, about half way down the page under Training your Husky.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/animal-zone/Husky.htm

[lady_p_gold]

Well all I can tell you is that I had a pair of them.  They are not like other dogs in that I feel they do not relate to you in quite the same way.  In our case we could never let them off the lead, they always ran off looking for livestock and as we were in the country it was difficult.  At about three months old they did a 'pincer' movement and cut off a sheep and tried to kill it.  We had some fabulous times racing about in one of those chariots, but spend a lot of time just worrying how to keep them in.  In the end some friends came to stay and left the back door open and one of them got out and was shot by a local farmer.  She was so beautiful it was a tragedy but I can understand he was defending his livestock.  One of them also pounced on cat and killed it ..   that is just in their nature.  Yet they were so gentle to us.  Lots of people keep them quite successfully and in a town it might be easier, but be prepared for some major fencing !  Sorry if this is not what you wanted to hear and others may say different but that is my own experience.  The other one lived a happy life for another ten years and recently died ...

[Piper-AK]

A friend of my mum's had a Husky ( not Siberian, it was Chinese I think?).  His friends got in major trouble because they owned it's brother who killed a swan whilst being walked.  They are lovely and loving, but as has been said above are totally free untamable spirits in some senses.

[drgnrdr]

no dog is 100% reliable "off" lead, there is always something maybe one day that might take their attention, all you can do is get TRAINING. Socializing   them ALLOT is one of the keys to any dog accepting different animals, the other is Genetics, the mother influences the pups more than anything else, also her disposition or temperment is KEY along with the father.

I know of another trainer that has 2 huskies, she understands the only off leash time they have is in a fenced area. They were socialized around and they have no trouble with cats. One of them likes cats so much that one outside kitty went up to her and scratched her eye with a swat and she just tried to get away, she didn't attack back.

They seem to also be permanent teenagers, they always act puppy'ish. Get to know the breed and know what you are getting into..eyes wide open... and find a really good breeder or rescue group that can help you. They have a double coat which makes them shed allot. So if you don't like hair, don't get one.

[Eels]

Much of what has been said already is true - these are extremely intelligent and energetic dogs with high prey drives.  To keep one happy and healthy you will need to have a lot of time and energy to spend walking, training ans stimulating their minds.  If you work a lot, for example, you will probably need to get an experienced and capable dog-walker to look after them during at least some of the day.

My only concern is that you would get one for 'company'.  Are you experiencing any problems with your Samoyed while it is left alone?  Other dogs rarely solve separation anxiety issues.  Perhaps if there are problems there it would be best to work on them before taking on another challenging breed, to avoid finding yourself in a nightmare with two unmanageable dogs, but please forgive me if I am way off the mark.

[gucciman]

our samoyed gets very lonely during the day when we are at work and tends to bark and howl a lot. i was hoping some doggy company would be good for her and i love the look of siberian huskies.

[Ppgayle]

hi there

i have a seven year old husky and she is lovely with other animals and yes we let her of the lead everytime we take her out(you wil hear the breeders now tut) but i truly believe it is how you raise the dog she was hard to get back at first but is now good as gold and the breeder we bought her from also let theirs off but they are loving pets